Consumer requests for Video on Demand, high definition content, and DOCSIS® 3.0 data services is consuming ever-increasing amounts of network capacity. Also, the pursuit of “green” business practices has become desirable. Cable operators are able to increase network bandwidth significantly, while simultaneously lowering energy consumption and improving operational efficiency, by driving fiber deeper into the network and reducing the number of homes served per node, for example, from 500 to 2,000 homes in a traditional hybrid fiber coax (HFC) architecture to typically around 100 homes.
By pushing fiber deeper into the network, typically within a few hundred feet of the subscribers' homes, the optical-to-electrical conversion of downstream signals occurs much closer to subscribers' homes, which eliminates the need for RF amplifiers in the coax plant, thereby achieving significant green benefits. With the length of the coaxial cable runs shortened, that portion of the network becomes entirely passive. As this reduces the size of node service areas, it in turn results in an increase of the narrowcast bandwidth available to individual subscribers.
Conventional construction methods for installing fiber optic micro cable deeper into the network require digging, trenching, boring, and restoration. Such methods impact customer landscaping, lawns, and other utilities including water, power, and gas lines.
More recently, alternative fiber deployment techniques have been developed whereby cable operator coaxial cables are converted to fiber-optic cables, which allows the operator to deploy fiber deeper in the network. These techniques remove the dielectric and center conductor of a hardline coax cable, while leaving the aluminum shield of the hardline coax in place for use as a conduit or micro-duct for installing fiber optic micro cable. These alternative deployment techniques are at substantially lower cost than traditional boring and trenching and take a fraction of the time. By avoiding digging, trenching, boring, and restoration, impacts to customer landscaping, lawns, and other utilities including water, power, and gas lines are avoided.
These alternative techniques typically involve attaching a hydraulic fitting to an end of an existing coax cable and injecting a biodegradable soap solution into the coax under pressure. This fluid compresses the foam core, breaking it from the shield, and pushes it out the far end. The remaining aluminum shield of the hardline coax is cleaned and then used as a conduit or micro-duct for installing fiber optic micro cable. These techniques are referred to as high pressure coax core ejection and fiber optic cable injection (“coax ejection and fiber injection techniques”).
In order to create longer continuous lengths of hollowed-out hardline coax cables, separate spans of coax cables that terminate at a splice point can be connected by airtight fittings. The coax ejection and fiber injection techniques conventionally require a special connector to be attached to the end of the coax cable to accommodate the hydraulic fitting used in the core ejection process and another special connector to facilitate injection of the fiber optic cable. Still another connector is required for connecting the hollowed-out hardline coax cable with a second hollowed-out hardline coax cable.
It may be desirable to provide a connector for use in coax ejection and fiber injection techniques that can accommodate the hydraulic fitting, facilitate injection of the fiber optic cable, and connect two hollowed-out aluminum shields of coaxial cables
In some aspects, it may be necessary to splice together two same cables, for example, two aluminum hardline cables. In such case, it may be important to have one side of the connector spin while both cables are assembled with both ends of the connector, for example, to avoid damage to one of the hardline cables that may be caused by frictional contact during spinning of the connector while making the splice.
Thus, it may be desirable to provide a connector for use in a splice connection that permits one connector body to spin relative to a cable inserted therein while coupling the connector body to another connector body.